The Second Time Around
by Disco Ant
Summary: Lupin changes when his father comes back into the crime scene and steals Zenigata away from him. Lupin IIxZenigata Language, some violence. Updates sporadically.
1. Chapter 1

First off, thanks to Nani who came up with the title and gave me permission to use it. :D I came up with this idea as a joke story. Joke because of the subject manner and the seriousness of it all. Doesn't mean you can't enjoy it as a serious story because you can. Now in only three easy payments of twenty nine ninety five! But wait! Call in the next five minutes and... Anyway, the chapters will be short and to the point. I think. As of now I only have a two chapters written out and they are both short. I find it funny how much this has changed from the original partial first chapter I posted. xD And then there's the other version I still have to figure out an end to...

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**The Second Time Around**

by D. Ant

**Chapter One**

Present Day

Lupin ran as the rain poured down around him. He ran for what seemed like forever, down the dark and deserted streets, turning down random sidestreets. Water splashed as he ran through puddles, the noise echoing off the brick walls around him. Thick steam rose from the sewer grates he passed, thinner clouds forming from his breath as he panted, unable to stop, running to stay alive.  
In the shadows stood a man, one who didn't seem confused by the zigzagging route Lupin was taking, walking calmly through the streets, following Lupin's every step, somehow knowing where to go.  
The man had no worries, no emotions to cloud his mind. Everything seemed to roll off him like the rain that pelted his suit, water steadily dripping off the rim of his hat. He knew what he had to do. Why he was there.  
Lupin ducked into an alley, taking a quick rest to catch his breath before he continued on, his destination close by.  
Running down another street and down another alley, he ran inside a door nearby, running inside of the old hotel. Finding the stairway, he made his way to the fourth floor.  
It was there that one of his hideouts stood. A hideout only he knew about. The hideout he went to as an escape from everything, to get away from it all.  
'To get away from him,' he thought, opening the door and stepping inside, navigating through the dark to the window, where he sat and watched the street below.  
'Why did he have to come back?' he asked himself with a sigh. 'And why did...' Another long sigh as he ran his hand over his hair, pushing off all the excess moisture that was rolling down his forehead.  
'I threw away my life for love. I threw everything away for nothing.' He laughed in disbelief of it all.  
'All my troubles to get a broken heart, lost friendships, bloodshed, pain...'  
He peaked out the window again, the streets still empty, the feelings of him being followed fading as the sounds of the howling wind and rain pounding on the window filled his ears.  
"I should have listened," he muttered with a sigh. "Goemon was right. Everything I did was meaningless in the end. Why couldn't I have seen it..."  
He stared out the window, his eyes gazing at the blinking streetlight across the way as his mind wandered, drifting off to all of the events that led to his current situation...


	2. Chapter 2

This thing may skip around a lot. Not really sure. It's basically just supposed to tell of the events from the last month and how they lead up to the present day. But it will go back to the present day when it needs to. Hopefully it won't be too confusing.

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**The Second Time Around**

by D.Ant

**Chapter Two**

One Month Ago

Lupin and Jigen grinned as they shoved wads of money into cloth bags, Goemon standing guard outside of the vault as the two worked quickly.  
"So, where are we celebrating tonight?" Jigen asked as he tied off another bag and tossed it in the growing pile of stuffed bags.  
"I'm afraid you'll have to celebrate alone tonight," Lupin said with a stupid grin on his face. "I'm gonna be busy doing other...things."  
Jigen rolled his eyes. "I still don't see why you keep dating that bitch. You always end up poor and broken hearted. What's the fucking point?"  
Lupin looked at him and shrugged. "Sometimes love doesn't have a point, Jigen."  
Jigen sighed in annoyance. He hated what Fujiko did to his friend, but he didn't feel it his place to tell Lupin how to run his life. "I'll go get the van," he said, passing Lupin and leaving the vault.  
Lupin watched him leave and then turned his head, staring down at the pile of bags. He sighed, his grin quickly fading. 'Sometimes I don't get it either, Jigen. Maybe...maybe it's just me I don't get.' He sighed once again and closed his eyes. 'Why do I continue to do this? I don't see the point anymore...'  
"Is something wrong?"  
Lupin jumped slightly as Goemon walked up behind him. "No, no. Everything is...everything's fine." He gave a slight smile, one which didn't stay long. He knew he could never fool Goemon, especially with such a sad attempt at lying, but he always did it anyway. He did it for himself, to try and make himself think there was nothing wrong. 'I don't buy it, either.'  
"Hmm," was all Goemon said in response. He never pried into the others lives. He didn't really care about their problems, but he always felt it polite to ask how they were if they seemed down. It made it seem like he cared. Plus no one opened up to him, so he got off easy.  
Lupin watched as Goemon walked to the back wall of the vault and took his sword to it, large pieces falling to the floor in front of him.  
Both then watched as Jigen backed the van up to the opening.  
He parked, leaving the engine running as he jumped from the drivers side and opened up the back doors, he, Lupin and Goemon tossing in the bags.  
Lupin worked at a slower pace than normal, his mind obviously on something else.  
Jigen didn't seem to notice and Goemon didn't really care.  
'Who am I doing this for?' Lupin wondered. 'For me? No. I don't need to do this anymore. For them?' He watched as Jigen tossed the last bag in, he and Goemon heading towards the front. 'Maybe that's it. But, then, who are they doing it for?' He stepped into the back and pulled the door closed.  
Jigen put the van in gear and sped off, sirens wailing in the distance.  
'Are they doing this for me? For themselves? For someone else?' Lupin sighed silently. Sensing something, he looked up, out the back windows, spotting the familiar man who stepped out of the shadows. Their eyes locked for a moment before Jigen turned the corner, a building obstructing each others view.  
Lupin looked down in shock. 'Was that...? No, he died. Didn't he?'


	3. Chapter 3

Own all the drama with Peach Girl? Dude, I don't need to own the drama. I **am** the drama. Tch. Peach Girl. Whatever, dude.  
This chapter takes us back to the present, but then has some sort of flashback. I forgot about this part when writing it and didn't want to take it back farther. This story just takes time and mangles it into a crumpled ball. How awesome is that? :D  
I love the meaningless explanation I have in the flashback. Why does anything pertaining to the job care? It doesn't. I just felt like writing it. xP This chapter made me laugh. It should have been more drama-ee but... -shudders- Yeah...I'm not **that** much of the drama...

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**The Second Time Around**

by D. Ant

**Chapter Three**

Present Day

Lupin got to his feet, taking off his damp jacket and tie, unbuttoning his shirt as he made his way to the closet, grabbing a pair of dry clothes. He changed there, where he could hear something should there be anything to hear.  
He now felt a little more comfortable in dry and warm clothes, wandering to the small fridge to grab a can of beer, something he always made sure his hideouts had an ample supply of.  
He opened the can and took a long drink as he wandered back to the window, where he sat and continued to watch. He was sure his pursuer was gone, staying somewhere in the area.  
"He knows I can't stay here forever," he muttered, his voice lacking any emotion. "But, can he...yeah...yeah he can stay there forever." He sighed, finishing off the can and tossing it aside. He stared back out at the flickering street light.  
'No, my troubles didn't begin then. They started way before that. Before my father even came back...'

_Lupin and Jigen had broken into a small office building. On the outside it appeared to be a law office, but on the inside it was anything but, the secondary offices of a notorious group of hackers.  
The group could steal anything, no matter how tight the security was. And their main target was government files, anything they could sell for millions on the black market.  
A high official from the Japanese government contacted Lupin, offering him the job of breaking into the place and stealing a copy of all they had before destroying all of the original files.  
He had given Lupin a small chip, something a large chunk of information could fit on and also something that could be easily hidden.  
Lupin took the job, taking Jigen with him. Everything had gone smoothly that night. That was until Zenigata showed up.  
"You can always count on him to fuck things up," Lupin said with a grin.  
"What's the plan?" Jigen asked.  
"You're gonna take the chip and get out of here while I get arrested to buy you some time to escape. He came for me, anyway."  
Jigen nodded, taking the chip and rushing off.  
Lupin stayed, destroying the last of the information. 'He came. He always comes. I can always count on him. Only him.'  
The door was kicked open, Zenigata grinning at Lupin as he reached into his jacket for handcuffs. "You're surrounded, Lupin!" he said with a laugh.  
Lupin rolled his eyes. "I've heard that one before."  
"Check the building," Zenigata ordered the other officers.  
"I came alone," Lupin said with a grin and a shrug. "But, if you really want them gone when they could be helping you to catch me..."  
Zenigata glared. "Hold it!" he yelled to the officers.  
"I'm the big fish, anyway, right?" Lupin laughed.  
Zenigata and the officers stood and stared Lupin down. Zenigata nodded, the officers rushing forward.  
Lupin jumped in the air and avoided them as they dove for him. He landed, but didn't get far as pair after pair of handcuffs clasped around him.  
Zenigata only laughed as the cops grabbed Lupin.  
"Overzealous much?" Lupin muttered, rolling his eyes._

They got to the station, Zenigata entering the interrogation room Lupin was put in, locking the door behind him and shutting off the camera.  
"You made it too easy," Zenigata said as he sat down. "Why were you there, Lupin?"  
Lupin shrugged. There was something about being alone with Zenigata, a sort of calm that came over him. It was something he never really noticed, but something that was always there.  
"Well?" Zenigata growled.  
Lupin got his hand out of the cuff that held him to the table. He stood and wandered around. "I was just bored, waiting for you to show up."  
"What?! What the hell kind of an answer is that?" Zenigata pounded his hands on the table as he stood.  
"For once, it was a truthful answer. Well, sort of truthful." Lupin looked back and grinned.  
Zenigata growled in anger and walked towards Lupin, grabbing him by his jacket and shoving him against the wall. He only glared, as no words came to him at that moment.  
Lupin stared into his eyes and then looked away. "There's...there's something I need to tell you," he said in a low voice.  
Zenigata, confused by his behavior, let go of him and took a step back. "Yeah?"  
"I...I realized a few weeks ago...I realized how much I'm attracted to you." Lupin stared down as he spoke, not daring to look Zenigata in the eyes.  
Zenigata was shocked, finally forcing a laugh. "What kind of trick is this? Something you thought would-" He stopped as Lupin walked up to him, placing his hand on his face and running it slowly down his cheek. "Wha-what are you doing?!" Zenigata could only stand frozen as all of this happened.  
"I love you," Lupin whispered, moving in to kiss Zenigata.  
Zenigata turned his head, Lupin kissing his cheek. "Lupin...Lupin, stop."  
Lupin brought his hands up and held Zenigata's head, finally able to kiss him on the lips.  
Zenigata struggled, finally shoving Lupin back against the wall. "Stop!" he yelled, glaring at him in confusion. "I'm not...I'm not that way, all right? Just...just stop, Lupin." He sighed and looked off to the side.  
"Please," Lupin begged. "Love me back."  
Zenigata looked up at Lupin, their gazes locking. As much as he didn't want admit it, there was something there, something more in the kiss he received. He had felt it, the feeling that now filled him, something he hadn't felt in a long time. Happiness.  
Lupin smiling as he saw the love in Zenigata's eyes, the two walking towards each other and embracing...

'...I found true happiness. For once in my life I was happy. So, why did it fuck everything up? How did everything wind up this way? Maybe...maybe I would have been better off miserable.' Lupin looked down and sighed, tears building up in his eyes. Bringing his knees to his chest, he bowed his head into them and cried.


End file.
